Heartbreaking Amnesiac
by solaesce
Summary: Auish. Years after Sasuke leaves, he returns on the premise of nothing but the assumption that Naruto's promises are unshakeablely infinite. Unforeseen events shake him and threaten to destroy the already unsteady balance amongst Konoha. NaruSasu/
1. Chapter 1

_Words:_ 2,330

_Written: _August 16, 2008

_Disclaimer:_ I own Naruto, obviously...not. Look here for future chapters.

_Warnings: _Auish, not really sure, but probably shonenai, nothing explicit, amnesia, maybe dark themes.

_Pairings: _Not really sure yet, but I've got some ideas.

_Notes: _Well, this seems like the beginning of a reeaaallly long story that I may or may not, but hopefully will, write. I rewrote this chapter 3 (3!) times and edited it twice...so I hope it's good. The next two chapters should be posted within a week or so 'cause I've already written half of them, but no promises. And, I'll trytrytry to write Drowning My Sorrows's epilogue, but...I haven't started, so, no promises.

Anyways, hope you like/enjoy/review/critique, etc.

--

Chapter 1: _Of Returns, Sullen Hate, and Grudging Forgiveness_

--

_Years after Sasuke leaves, he returns on the premise of nothing but the assumption that Naruto's promises are unshakeablely infinite. Unforeseen events shake him and threaten to destroy the already unsteady balance amongst Konoha._

_--_

It was one of those tranquil clear nights, with soft breezes that raised goose bumps and gave gentle pushes to the few clouds drifting serenely in a deep royal clue sky. The crescent moon shone brightly in the night sky, flanked by shimmering stars that twinkled as they stood by the silver guardian of the night sky resolutely.

And the light of the moon bleached the forests of the Fire Country a frosty silver, pooling into puddles of argentine wherever it filtered past the sharp edges of the dense leaves, locking on the only movement in the still scene.

A blur of jet black hair and clothes darker than the night surroundings and pale ivory skin that seemed to glow as moonlight struck it.

Uchiha Sasuke was nothing but a mere blur, an artistic blend of ebony and ivory, as he sped through the forest, dashing through the trees and leaping from branch to branch with the aid of chakra as he headed towards his birthplace.

Konohagakure, his birthplace, his once-home, and his only true home.

To this day, he would only, barely grudgingly admit to himself silently that Konoha was the one place where he truly belonged, belonged to more than any other, despite its seemingly humble, seemingly average appearance.

At the risk of sounding clichéd, he would admit that it was his true home, a home that was somehow more than just his scattered pleasant childhood memories and the place where he had grown up. It was the one place where he was accepted, where he could sleep deeply and without fear of never waking up again, where he could smile unguarded and feel laughter bubble out without needing to force it down, to suppress it back to an apathetic silence.

And now, over half a decade after he had left it, he would return to his birthplace, more powerful than ever and for once in his life of 19 years, he was determined to win and win back his village's, his Hokage's, and his friends—no, his family's trust.

And he would allow himself to do nothing less than succeed.

No matter what it took.

--

By the time he arrived, it was already midmorning, golden rays of sunlight lighting up the vividly green forest and dappling the floor with beams of light. A slight breeze blew away the light sheen of sweat on his skin.

As he arrived at the training grounds, his feet slowed down unconsciously, as hesitation and doubt faltered his determination and stalled his imminent arrival.

Was this—truly the best plan? To boldly walk into the Hokage's tower, to meet someone who had not known him before his—defection, inform her of her ex-teammate's death, vow his allegiance, and bribe her with information that he knew she needed?

Would that truly convince her of his change of heart?

He blinked, suddenly realizing that the training grounds weren't quite as empty and deserted as he had originally thought, as he saw and recognized a head of light pink hair, longer than his memories recalled.

"—4...3...2...1...ready or not, I am so gonna find all of you and make you all pay for making me it!" a firm voice yelled out confidently.

It was undoubtedly his old teammate. Taller, leaner, and with a confidence that showed in the set of her shoulders and her smirking grin, Haruno Sakura had changed quite a bit from her 12-year old self but for the wide green eyes set in a broad slightly leaner than before face framed with strands of pink hair.

"Aha!" her voice suddenly yelled near him. "Found one of ya!"

His eyes widened with shock as he ducked instinctively, barely dodging a fist that cracked the tree trunk that he had just been resting against as he leapt off the trunk with ease and landed in the middle of the practice grounds lightly.

"I—Sasuke-kun?!" the rosette's voice immediately changed from loud and cheerful to a shocked gasp, and he cursed himself inwardly for allowing his guard down, wondering if he should flee or not.

The decision was made for him, as a split second later, he was surrounded. His thin lips pressed together in a wry smirk as he recognized all of them, despite not having seen them in years: Shikamaru leaning lazily against a tree in the shade, his arms crossed across his chest, his sharp eyes watching him carefully, and his shadow already fastened to Sasuke's feet.

Next to him was Ino, her hair no longer in the constant ponytail that Sasuke remembered, but down, reaching her waist, one hand twirling a kunai knife casually, the other grasping the hilt of a slim sword with slender fingers.

Lee was glaring at him, his thick eyebrows pointing downwards fiercely and his large round eyes staring at him, as he readied himself in one of his taijutsu poses, with Neji next to him, Byakugan activated and prepared in one of his Gentle Fist Eight Trigrams stances.

A little ways away from them was Tenten, if he remembered correctly, a katana in one hand, and several shuriken clasped in the other.

"Sasuke-kun?" Sakura looked bewildered, her already wide eyes round with shock, as she slowly gravitated towards him. "What are you doing here?"

He scowled irritably; he had hoped to reach the Hokage tower without interference or fuss. Obviously that was not going to happen here. "I need to see the Hokage."

"What, exactly, makes you think that we would allow you, a missing-nin of S-rank, to see the Hokage?" Shikamaru drawled lazily, his dark eyes unexpectedly piercing and sharp.

"I have information that she would appreciate hearing," Sasuke replied stiffly, glaring at Shikamaru.

Shikamaru paused, obviously turning his sentence around a hundred different ways in his head, and he scowled at the genius's blatant lack of trust in him.

"Only if you allow Neji to hit your tenketsu."

"As long as none of you bind me." Sasuke countered without missing a beat.

Shikamaru frowned, but nodded at Neji, whose hands blurred as they lightly tapped Sasuke's chakra points.

As Neji finished closing up all of Sasuke's tenketsu, Shikamaru quickly signaled to Ino to warn the Hokage, who gave a barely perceptible nod before vanishing.

If Sasuke noticed Ino's disappearance, he didn't say a word about it, only impatiently demanding, "If we may get a move on, now?"

As they gathered into a tight group surrounding the Uchiha, Shikamaru remembered just why he had never really liked him.

_He was always confident to the point of arrogance, even back when we were in the Academy, and he doesn't seem to have changed much at all._

--

The Godaime Hokage tapped her smooth fingertips together, watching them do so gracefully, admiring the appearance of youth that they gave off.

Long, slender, and smooth, with just the right angle of taper at the tips and a slight sheen in her unpainted nails, which were elegant and shapely.

"Hokage-sama?"

Without looking up, she replied, "Send him in. Alone. The rest of you are dismissed."

As Shizune opened her mouth to protest, she added pointedly, "Even you, Shizune."

Shizune huffed exasperatedly, muttering about dangerous criminals and careless Hokages and who know what could happen?'s and left the room along with Ino, Shikamaru, and Sakura, who had filled her in what had happened.

Tsunade had to say that she was honestly surprised. What were the chances of the Uchiha boy coming here willingly and turning himself in under the pretense that he had something to say to her?

Fascinating, really.

Her fingertips rested against each other lightly, and she stared at them, before finally looking up as the door shut quietly and the Uchiha boy sauntered forward, giving a slight bow. "Hokage-sama."

"Uchiha Sasuke," she returned, every bit as polite. "Sit down, please."

She watched as he sat himself down, feeling a tendril of vindictive satisfaction as she noted the stiffly straight back and the frigid stillness that suggested he wasn't quite as composed and unnerved as he attempted to look.

"Well, do you have anything to say for yourself? Or would you like to be sentenced by trial as soon as possible?"

"If I may say so, Hokage-sama, but I do believe that a trial is not, in fact, necessary," he said in a smooth voice that she immediately hated, forbidden images of his pale lips slowly smirking out words that others had told her he had said. She quashed the surge of anger, of almost-hate down immediately.

"Oh?"

"Yes. Despite the—expectations of many, I was, after all, only a 12-year old genin when I left Konoha, less than a year from when I graduated from the Academy. No matter how powerful nor gifted, for genin to be rated as S-ranked missing-nin is slightly overrated."

"You think so, do you?" Tsunade leaned forward slightly, her fingers digging creases into the wood of her desk, her lips pressed into a tight smile. "However, being 12-year old does not mean much to ninjas, as you could be as weak as you wish to portray yourself, or strong enough to be ANBU captain, as others have managed to achieve in history."

She paused, forcing herself to relax her fingers before she, unable to resist the temptation, added, "I am sure you know that quite well, Uchiha Sasuke."

"Not only did you leave willingly, which could easily be construed as betrayal, you also attempted the murder of one of our shinobi genin, your own _teammate_, when he came to rescue you because he did not believe it possible that you would betray the village nor him so completely. Afterwards, you joined up with Orochimaru, who _murdered _my predecessor, the Third Hokage, and _is _a S-ranked missing-nin traitor, and dedicated yourself to his teachings, much of which is forbidden jutsu. During the period between then and now, you have caused much destruction and death."

He could only stare at her frozen, her composed face pale and smug and blank, her large eyes cool and angry and distant and screaming the things that she wouldn't say, an eyebrow barely cocked above one eye, asking _Why should I trust you, you out of all of the people? You who betrayed your friends the way he betrayed us. Betrayed _me.

They were accusing, spiteful, bitter, _Do you think that I would be even talking to you if it weren't for Naruto?! Naruto who you betrayed more than the rest of us, Naruto whose—_

Her pale pink lips moved, and he could only distantly hear the rest of her words, her tone cold and neutral countering the anger hidden behind coldness and apathy in her accusing eyes, "Pray tell why I should be willing to overlook all that?"

He grasped blindly at all of the arguments he had thought of, pulling them out, forcing them through his numb mouth, "Because—I have much information and news that would be beneficial to this village. During the period that I was—gone, I lived in Sound for several years, so it would be a simple matter in inform you of the strength and blueprints of the village, as well as how to counter many of the jutsu and attacks."

He licked his dry lips, missing the pained grimace that flickered in her eyes, "Not only that, but I have not murdered any Leaf shinobi in these past 7 years or so, and avoided murder wherever, whenever I could, nor have I enclosed any information about Konoha to enemy shinobi. In any case, your village needs as much manpower as possible, does it not? Locking me up is simply a waste of resources."

Tsunade frowned inwardly, vindictively wishing that the arguments the Uchiha boy was applying to himself weren't quite so valid.

"I will grant your wish to become one of the Leaf shinobi once again," she finally said, carefully noting the flicker of relief and victory in the dark eyes. "However you will be on probation until I believe that you have proved yourself. Considering your supposed level of strength, I believe that it would be prudent to promote you to chuunin level, but you may not take the jounin exam until next spring, _if_ you are no longer on probation by then. You will not be allowed any solitary missions; you will have guards periodically checking up on you, and possibly, some sessions with certified—therapists, as well as sessions with Ibiki Morino whenever he requests you. Your pay will also be docked from A-rank missions to B, B-ranked to C, etc. Understood?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama," Sasuke said quietly, bowing deeply. He fought to suppress a grin of joy, ignoring the flicker of happiness and relief that warmed his chest.

"Good," she tossed him a small pouch. "You may use that to rent lodgings, if you cannot find any free ones, as the Uchiha mansions and estates are all blocked off or used."

"Understood, Hokage-sama."

"Good. You are dismissed. Find Shikamaru and call him in, please." Get out. Get the fuck out of here before I lose all self control and kick your ass to hell.

"If I may ask a few questions, please, Hokage-sama?" Sasuke stood up, head still slightly bowed.

Tsunade hesitated before nodding. "Yes?"

"Is Uzumaki Naruto currently in the village? If so, where may I find him?" He could feel his heart pounding in his ears as he waited the blond's reply with a hidden eagerness.

"He should be reporting the results of his mission soon," Tsunade said absently, frowning slightly. "Call Shikamaru in."

"Hai, Hokage-sama."

As he opened the door, she hesitated, but called out, "Don't expect him to be the same person that you left...Uchiha Sasuke."

He paused before slipping out the door, and she glared at the closed door, allowing her emotions to run rampant across her face now that she was alone.

_Damn that stupid Uchiha boy. Why couldn't he die and just leave us all well alone?_

_--_

Anyways, please, please review, and tell me if you like it, and if you didn't, why. Thanks.


	2. Chapter 2

The sun was slowly sinking beneath the mountains, staining the western edge of the sky colorful shades of flamboyant crimsons

_Words:_ 3,635

_Written: _August 21, 2008

_Disclaimer:_ Read Chapter 1.

_Warnings: _AUish, not really sure, but probably shonenai, nothing explicit, amnesia, maybe dark themes.

_Pairings: _Not really sure yet, but I've got some ideas.

_Notes:_ So, here's Chapter 2. Longest thing I've written, I think, considering how it's 8 pages on Microsoft Word. The fic's not turning out right, sadly, because I'm not really good at expressing things, especially when I'm trying to write something dark...

So. Recommended fic of the chapter: 'Quotidian' by firefly. Very, nicely _dark_... I love dark fics... Anyways, the pairing's Hidan/Temari, but it's really very good, so don't be put off by the pairing.

Anyways, hope you like/enjoy/review/critique, etc.

--

Chapter 2: _Of Unforeseen History, Bitter , and Grudging Forgiveness_

--

The sun was slowly sinking beneath the mountains, staining the western edge of the sky colorful shades of flamboyant crimsons and scarlets, the nearby clouds dyed colors that were anywhere from pale peach to a fiery tangerine.

Nightfall was coming, and the eastern edge of the celestial regions had deepened from the azure blue sky of day to the blend of royal blue and indigo of dusk.

Sasuke wanders the streets of Konoha aimlessly, hands tucked in the pockets of a dark blue hoodie, gracefully making his escape.

He had finally managed to lose all of his—well, not _his_ friends, not really, but all of Sakura and Naruto's friends, all of whom wanted his to stay, to talk to them, to be their fuckin' friends. Like they knew him, forgave him, like he couldn't see all of their sideways glances, all of their nervousness and wariness that they tried to hide.

Tried to, anyways.

But it was more than he expected, their forgiveness, their willingness to overlook his betrayal for Sakura, but mostly for Naruto. He would never admit it, but, secretly, it felt—nice, knowing that they meant well, that they wanted to be his friend, not so that they could curry favor or get into his ass, but just to be—friends. It was—different. Nice, almost pleasant, but for the fact the one person he wanted to see most, needed to see never appeared.

He sighed, absentmindedly wondering where he would sleep tonight. He could always sleep in the forest, he supposed, or a cave—there were quite a few of them around—as was usual for him, but he wanted to sleep in a —real bed. To take a bath with hot water for once.

After all, he had more than enough money, so he might as well take advantage of it. Maybe even have a little drink or two for once.

Sasuke's dark eyes took in the street as he drifted towards an area where, if he recalled correctly, had quite a few bars, cafés, and nightclubs, as well as cheap lodgings where he could spend the night.

He finally chose a nicely lit up nightclub, with a small, closed café in the front, in a multistory building that looked fairly nice and clean.

He slipped through the door, maneuvering through the tables and people gracefully before he sat down in a shadowy corner on the left, on one of the tall stools—cushioned, red—next to the bar, waiting for the bartender to notice him as he tapped his fingers to the loud music.

"'scuse me, sir," a cynical voice cut in through his musings. "What would you like tonight?"

"Anything will do," Sasuke murmured, peering up at the bartender, vaguely surprised to see a tall, pretty brunette with narrow eyes, dark violet lipstick and thick kohl eyeliner and silvery amethyst eye shadow in a lacy, lavender and white dress covered in frills and bows, who looked out of place despite the thick, striking make up. "I'm not real picky."

"Hey, what about the special?" a voice cut in brightly. "A cocktail. It's pretty good."

Sasuke hesitated, but shrugged nonchalantly, resolutely not looking at the owner of the cheerful voice.

"Excellent! One for me, too, _Kankuro-chan! _Oh, and put his on my tab!" the voice smirked cheerfully.

"Shut the fuck up, Naruto," the girl growled, the noise at odds with her frilly outfit before she stalked away, muttering darkly.

Sasuke swung his head around so fast he nearly got whiplash. "_Naruto?!"_

The blond grinned at him, almost sheepishly, one hand running through his light hair. "Hey. You're—uh..." Snaps fingers. "Uchiha Sasuke, right? The one who was on my genin team a couple of years ago before turning missing-nin, and then came back and got pardoned by Tsunade-baba?"

Sasuke nodded slowly, frowning as the surge of elation turned into bewilderment and shock, his mind beginning the trying task of making sense of what the blond had just said.

"Hehe... Sorry about the hesitation just now," Naruto flashed him a brilliant smile. "I've got this, like, totally selective memory or something. It's kinda photographic—sometimes. I've forgotten so much that people will, like, mention something, and I'll have no idea what bullshit they're talkin' about. For the longest time, I couldn't even remember that you were _on_ my genin team. Stupid, isn't it?"

Sasuke simply stared, unable to comprehend the information through the shocked daze.

Just then, the girl walked back, irritation narrowing her thin eyes. "Here. And you better pay, retard."

Naruto immediately turned his attention to her, widening his eyes innocently. "Who, me? Why would I need to pay when my tab is on the house, Kankuro_-chan?_"

Kankuro—her name sounded oddly familiar to Sasuke for some reason—snapped at Naruto, "I'm not a fuckin' girl, dammit! Quit adding _chan_ to the back of my name!"

"You're not?" Sasuke blurted out before he could think his actions through clearly, immediately regretting his words as the girl—no, _guy_,—snapped his head towards him. Suddenly he remembered who exactly Kankuro was.

"_Excuse _me? You think cuz yer the famous Uchiha _Sasuke_ mean that I'm gonna take bullshit from you?" he growled, heavily made up eyes flashing angrily.

"I can hardly call it _my_ fault that you were mistaken for the other gender rather than a transvestite," Sasuke retorted coolly, smirking at her—_him_ infuriatingly.

Kankuro flushed angrily, the hue somehow making him look prettier. "I ain't a transvestite!"

"Drag queen, then?"

He opened his mouth to retort, but Naruto quickly cut in, smiling winningly. "Hey, hey, guys. It's not that big of a deal. No need to fight and wreck the place up, 'kay, guys? We just finished repairing from when Sakura-chan went on a rampage and destroyed half the building—"

"You seem to forget that Haruno-san destroyed the building because of _you_," Kankuro interrupted dryly.

Naruto ignored him. "Anyways, introductions! Uchiha, Kankuro of the Sand, puppet master. Kankuro, Uchiha Sasuke, infamous genin. And _I_—," he paused for dramatic effect. "—am the great Uzumaki Naruto, future Hokage."

He flashed them both a victory sign.

"Yeah, yeah, don't be such a dumbass," Kankuro muttered. "Anyways, my shift is _o-vah_. See ya in a few."

As soon as he left, Naruto almost doubled over with laughter. "Fuck, that was hilarious! _Transvestite?! Drag queen_?! That was _priceless_."

Sasuke merely raised an eyebrow, waiting for the laughing fit to be over. Naruto soon sobered up, wiping away fake tears. "Anyways, Kankuro lost a bet, so we made got the girls to dress him as a chick and take a shift here, cuz me and my friends, we all co-own this place and open it whenever we're. It's part café, part nightclub, and there's lodging upstairs. That's where we stay, sometimes. Long story."

Sasuke didn't say anything, opting to take a sip of his drink—a cocktail that was tastefully fruity and slightly sweet.

"So—uh..."

"May I rent a room here?"

"...What?"

"May I rent a room here?" Sasuke repeated patiently. "I do not have anywhere else to go, but I have sufficient money to rent lodgings."

"Uh...sure! You can have a room for free, if you want," Naruto offered, still cheerful, still grinning so happily, carelessly that it was beginning to grind on Sasuke's nerves. "I mean, you were one of us, way back before, right? I mean, we weren't real close friends or anything, just teammates, but I'm pretty sure that none of the others would mind. You'll have to work a couple of shits every now and then in order to stay and get any of the profit, though. That alright with you?"

But Sasuke wasn't listening anymore; all he could hear were the echoes of Naruto's voice

—_Why do I have to stuck with _him?!_—_

—_Hey. You're—uh... -Snaps fingers.- Uchiha Sasuke, right? —_

—_Dammit, why are you so-so fuckin' stupid, Sasuke-teme? —_

—_The one who was on my genin team a couple of years ago before turning missing-nin?—_

—_You could've _died_. —_

—_For the longest time, I couldn't even remember that you were on my genin team.—_

—_Don't you know that I can't live without you...?—_

—_I mean, we weren't real close friends or anything—_

—_Sometimes...when I look at you, I think of you—_

—_Just teammates... —_

—_As..._more_ than just my—lover, but like a..._brother, _family—_

"—chiha," he was forced out of his thought by Naruto's voice, so familiar, yet so different from the one he remembered, tinged with concern, but concern for a _stranger_. Not for—him. "You alright there, Uchiha?"

"Y-yeah. Just—spaced out for a bit," Sasuke forced out, but he felt anything but. Anger and grief and betrayal were all twisting inside of him and all he wanted to do was scream _What do you mean by that?! How can you _say_ that we were nothing more than just teammates?! Not even close friends?_

Naruto looked at him dubiously, but took a sip of his drink, bobbing his head to the loud beat of the music.

They sit in silence, Sasuke feeling sick to his stomach, as though Naruto had personally betrayed him—somehow. '_Aren't you the one who left him?'_ a smug voice asked in his head.

'_Shut the hell up,_' he thought back angrily.

'_Telling yourself to shut up isn't very—effective,' _the voice sneered delicately, but remained silent afterwards.

Suddenly, he realized just who could the answer to all of his questions. _'Sakura! She probably knows him best. She's smart; she'll know what's—wrong.'_

"Is Haruno Sakura here, by any chance?" Sasuke asked.

"Uhm, yeah. She's upstairs, I think. Want me to take you to her?" Naruto offered.

Sasuke nodded tightly, for once glad of Naruto's helpful nature.

--

"—he's forgotten you."

Sakura stared at Sasuke, her lips pressed together tightly in a grim smile.

"...I beg your pardon?" Sasuke forced out, _making_ his tone calm, his voice steady.

Because it was impossible, _impossible_, that _Naruto_ would forget him. Not Naruto, Naruto who had been the light, the grinning beam of beautiful sunshiny hope that Sasuke had grasped on, had desperately remembered to get through everything. Not Naruto, who was insufferably happy and understanding and naïve and strong.

Not Naruto, never Naruto, because without Naruto, he would drown in this village of sideways glances and accusing eyes that screamed at him.

_Why should we ever trust you again, when you took that trust and tore it to pieces, when you betrayed us, left us? When you would kill your best friend, your 'precious person,' your brother, your _lover_?!_

Without Naruto, he would have already drowned, thrashing in the sea of lewd stares and smirking smiles and soft empty whispers and cold steel to his neck, resigning himself to an empty life but for Itachi's death.

"He's forgotten you," Sakura repeated, her steely green eyes hard and flinty, staring at him coolly. "Everything that made you—_special_ to him, everything that you did together, everything that you a _someone_ that he knew, _everything_. All he remembers of you is common knowledge, what everyone knows, like how you were the _pride_ of the village, the first in our class, how you left us for a _traitor._"

"Some _pride._"

She spat the words out, as though they left a sour taste in her mouth, her eyes a strange shade of green that he had never before seen, and all he could think was that he was drowning in that odd hue, piercingly and cold. They were accusing, angry, joyful, elated, betrayed, _screaming _at him.

_Why are you back?—-Ilovedyoulovedyoulovedyou so much, but you wouldn't even spare me a glance—I'm so happy—I missed you—We don't need you—Leave us _alone_—Stay—_

"It's been—years since he remembered you," Sakura added, her tone listless, only slightly less stinging, quieter. "He hasn't been the same since, but he doesn't realize that. Whenever we tell him about you, he doesn't understand and forgets it by the next day."

"But—why?" Sasuke chokes out, his words almost garbled, almost indistinct.

"We don't know, honestly," Sakura admits wearily. "It's some kind of function amnesia, purely psychological in origin. It appears to be a combination of lacunar amnesia and repressed memory. Kyuubi says that Naruto doesn't want to remember you, so he's forcing his memories away unconsciously until you became nothing more than a background person who was just—there."

They were silent, neither knowing what to say to the other, and they study each other, trying to find their friends, their younger selves in each other.

Sakura's face still had the remnants of baby fat, Sasuke noticed absentmindedly, peering through his thick eyelashes. Though her face was nowhere near as round as it used to be. Pale pink eyebrows were softly elevated above viridescent eyes, a sort of—apple green. A crooked, delicate nose was above a kind mouth a few shades darker than her hair, which was now layered, and reached midway down her back, framing her face messily. She had become slightly leaner, slightly more muscled, slightly tanner, just enough to look almost-dangerous, but she still looked soft. Forgiving. Gentle.

Sasuke, on the other hand, had paled, his silky, once-fair skin now an ivory white, almost glowing in the dim light, strikingly harsh against his jet black hair, still in the same messily spiky hairstyle of so many years ago, but longer. The years he had spent training had made him muscled, almost sinewy, his svelte frame gracefully slender. All hints of baby fat were gone, leaving behind an aristocratic face that was perfectly, androgynously flawed with precise features: too-large eyes rimmed with thick eyelashes and matched his hair perfectly but for slight iridescently red sheen, a flawlessly straight nose above beautifully, blood red lips. Sakura had never seen anyone so—so inhumanely beautiful, so dangerously pretty, as though some incarnate of the darkest, most frightening nights, of the coldest, most sorrowful deaths, and all of the deadly mysteries they could hide.

They stared at each other, brokenly angry green against cold, shattered ebony, before Sakura destroys their silence, her voice apathetically blank. "You may have the room at the corner on the floor above this one. Just go up the stairs and walk down the hallway until you reach one without a decorated door. You can stay tonight for free, but tonight, we'll discuss what to do with you."

Sasuke stood up, his ivory skin pallid, his unnatural grace almost human. "Thank you Sakura...san."

He inclined his head slightly before slipping out of the room silently, closing the door behind him. There was no sign of him having ever been in the room other than the slight depression in the cushioned chair where he had sat.

Sakura fell backwards onto her bed, feeling her closed eyes filling with tears.

"You should not thank me," she whispered, despite knowing that Sasuke was long gone. "Thank Naruto. If it weren't for him, you wouldn't be here, you wouldn't be asking me for a room, and you sure as hell wouldn't have been given a second chance.

"Dammit Sasuke." Her tears spilled over and slid down her pale skin. "Why are you here? Naruto doesn't need you anymore."

"_You're just going to break his heart all over again._"

--

It was barely dawn, and the sky was a pale smoky gray, slowly lighting up as the sun neared the beginning of its journey across the heavenly expanse.

Sasuke has managed to stay, stay only because he cannot find the energy within him to leave his once-home, and the blond who has captivated his every thought, every hope.

_I was a fool_, he thinks, as he dresses quickly, his long slender fingers deft and unhurried. _A _fool_, to think that everything could go back to the way it was, to think that I _deserved _to be as happy as I could have been_.

It has been less than a month, but he has lost track of the days, every day bleeding into the other in monotony. It has been barely weeks, but he already has a schedule.

Wake up. Get dressed. Go out. Smile, be polite, act fuckin' _grateful_ that you're here. Nod and smile. Eat when you're hungry. Go see Ibiki when he asks—calls—for you. Smile, smile. Eat sometime. Come back. Try to sleep. Smile, make sure you're smiling.

After all, you're happy because Orochimaru's finally dead, and you're back where you belong.

He stares at his reflection in the mirror, indifferently noting his inhumane beauty, his black eyes, black hair, white skin, red lips, shadows playing across his face, underneath his prominent cheekbones, a faint blue against his colorless skin, subtly crooning _Dangerous, that's who you is. A seducin' deathbringin' heartbreaker, ain't _that _the truth, sweetheart?_

Unbridled rage surges over him, and he punches the mirror in one clean movement, oblivious of the thud as his fist meets the looking glass strengthened by the wall behind it, the sharp crackling sounds that quickly fades away.

He stares at his distorted reflection, noting how his eyes were still perfectly reflected towards him, acutely black and subtly red, the shadows smiling at him indulgently. _Insane eyes_, he notes dully, almost laughing. It is then he notes the blood dribbling down his fist, down the cracked mirror in fractured veins, bright red and vivid against the rest of the reflection, dull and colorless, and this, time, he does laugh, softly and without humor.

He laughs and laughs, soft and hysterical and full of grief, and he pours a drop of chakra into the glass, ensuring it would stay together before leaping out the window.

Sasuke runs through the village, leaping over rooftops gracefully, silently, before he reaches the Hokage monument. Instead of climbing, he chooses to run upwards, the precisely controlled chakra at his foot leaving behind footprints of smooth stone without a blemish.

The chilly, dawn wind whips his hair around and raises goose bumps along his skin with a casual touch, moaning and shrieking in the distance, an eerie howling that he ignored. The only surprise is when stripes along his face freeze. He brushes his skin lightly there, astonished to find his fingertips wet and when he licks them, he realizes that they are tears.

How long has it been since he had cried? Salty, warm tears slowly trickling down his face, leaving tracks of moisture?

It is then that he sees Naruto, staring into the distance, arms wrapped around his legs tightly, and his unmistakable hair fluttering in the breeze.

He almost began to run towards the blond, but slowed down just in time to maintain his steady pace, absolutely refusing to acknowledge how much he wanted to see the blond, how much he _needed_ to feel his burning warmth, to hear his voice, low and husky (not at all like Sasuke's smooth, deep voice), crooning assurances in his ears.

Sasuke hesitates as he nears the blond, wondering if he should leave, but Naruto turns around, slight astonishment flickering across his face before he smiles (but not the smile that was _Sasuke's_, soft and warm and loving; just a smile (still made his heart pound) for strangers, for everybody). "Hey, Uchiha. 'Mornin.'"

"You're up early," Sasuke remarks, his voice soft, sitting down gracefully.

"And you aren't?" Naruto retorts automatically. "Shush and let me watch the sun in peace."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, but stayed silent, his eyes appraising the blond slowly.

He had grown up, grown up into an exotic beauty, his once boyishly round face now lean and broad with wide cheekbones, the whisker-like markings darker than before—catlike, really, a quality emphasized by his slit pupils in large, almond-shaped eyes every bit as vividly blue as he remembered. His frame was wiry, sinewy and lean; his hair had been grown out, now slightly shaggily disheveled instead of uneven spikes, and decorated by fiery red highlights.

Naruto had grown up, grown up into an exotic beauty, longer golden hair slightly disheveled and ornamented with fiery red highlights framing a broad, lean face with wide cheekbones and darkened whisker-like markings—catlike, really, a quality emphasized by his slit pupils in large, almond-shaped eyes every bit as vividly blue as he remembered. His frame was lean, sinewy and golden, his slender, dexterous fingers with a hint of sharp claws at the end.

They sat there in silence as the sun slowly rose in the faraway distance, bright rays of light indicating its presence from behind the mountains before one could actually see its brilliant grandeur. The sky lightened as time passed and golden beams of sunlight lit up the village below.

"I love watching this," Naruto said quietly, his soft, almost melancholic voice the first sound to break their comfortable silence. "Watching the sun just—coming out and lighting everything up and seeing the—contrast between it being _just_ bright enough to see and actually having light just, y'know, _light _everything up."

As he talked, his hands moved, as though of their own accord, as he struggled to find the words to describe the beauty.

Sasuke turned his head around slowly and stared at Naruto, slightly surprised at the wistful tone and the poetical words of the blond. "It _is_ very—beautiful."

"Yeah. Yeah, it is," Naruto said slowly, his voice still soft. Sasuke watched him, feeling a fierce yearning as the sunlight struck the blond, who closed his eyes, as though a—god, as the brilliant light reflecting off caused his sunkissed skin to glow softly, his fire-streaked golden hair gleaming and flowing backwards in the small breeze. His pale, thick eyelashes shimmered in the intense light, fluttering slightly as it cast a small shadow on the silken skin of his cheek.

They sat there, in companionable silence, as Naruto watches the village that he loves and Sasuke watches the blond he loves.

--


End file.
